You can’t please everyone. And I don’t usually do this, but I do want to give a bit of an explanation for my last post, the preview, due to the surprisingly large amunt of people putting me down on how I jumped to conclusions for a lot of series, and how I should do more research. To that, I have to say the following:

On general, writing the preview for a large season like this one takes about half a day. Not half a workday, I seriously spent more than half an actual day to write some of my previews. This one was not as large as normal, but I’d still say it took me about 8 hours in total to write. to the pepole claiming that I should do more research: could you please hand me some extra time in order to do the research for EVERY single series that’s coming out? Because it took enough time on its own to write everything there already.

And consider this: I could have left these series out completely, but that’s dismissing them even more. In this preview, I at least tried to write a sentence on why shows don’t interest me (on a personal level), because I at least repsect the series enough to want to do that. And I find it important to be able to see the big picture for a season, so you can try to see a bit of the trends that are going on. There are two types of shows that I don’t include: kiddie shows and sequels of series that I haven’t watched. The only reason for that is that I’ve really run out of things to say about them, and leaving a comment about every single one of them would really just end up with me, copying and pasting the same thing again and again and again.

Of course, doing research is fun, and I really want to be able to continue to do research for the series that really interest me. But here’s the thing: when a show has a tagline that the main character’s sister has the hots for him, I’m instantly turned off and not motivated to do that at all. I know it’s shallow and all, but at this point I cannot give every single show a chance. Because of that, I resort to my own experience and hunches to try and guess which series will be worth my time. (Because yes, this is my blog and I write purely my own opinions and impressions). A big green flag is when the premise of a series excites me. A big red flag is having incest in the premise. Want to know why? Because the last series where I’ve seen incest featured so prominently that was actually good was Koi Kaze. That was a long time ago, especially considering how many incest shows there are!

Let me explain my taste here, and what I’m looking for: I’m looking for the big picture. I’m looking for a series that has a good story, an intriguing setting, solid and fun characters, interesting visuals, great music. A series in which all of this comes together. I’m looking for the signs that predict such a series, and a lack of upright creativity doesn’t spell out much good in that department. If you can’t even think of a solid premise, then what am I to expect of the rest of the series then? Perhaps one good episode or something, but that’s nowhere near enough for that I’m looking for.

You may have a great political plot in your second half, and you may have this really detailed look at tennis, but if the rest doesn’t come together, then there’s just something missing. Of course they are only previews, but that’s why I also always try to watch as many first episodes as possible. I mean if your story is good, but when it’s told in a dry or boring way, then it’s still not really exciting. I love shows that have tons and tons of talking and complex plots, like Mouryou no Hako, the Tatami Galaxy, or Ergo Proxy, but all these series also remembered to have an outstanding presentation, with characters and plots that stood out right from the start.

You have series that take their time in the first half to build up, only to get fired off in their second half. However, you have series that are completely boring in their first half, only to suddenly get watchable in their second halves, and you have series that in their first halves take their time to set everything up and build up some stuff here and there about their stories, characters and setting, and bring everything together in their second halves. The latter is the only one I’m interested in. The build-up paying off.

The difficult part is ofcoure trying to point out these kinds of shows. That’s the thing that makes things really difficult: what shows are really building up to something, and which ones aren’t. First of all it helps if it’s not an adaptation, because especially the lazy manga adaptations have a tendency to just not pay off and end randomly. I don’t like that, so unless I can see a good ending working out, an adaptation, especially a manga or light novel-adaptation gets minus points. These stories furthermore were written for a totally different medium, and they take a skilled writer and director to skillfully make them work as an anime. This is not something that’s given!

Second of all, there is this thing as a solid execution that excuses a lot about a slow pacing. I don’t care how incredibly slow you are, if you’re interesting then I will watch you. A great example of that is Aku no Hana: the pacing was incredibly slow, but due to how well the characters were animated and brought to life, it worked. A lot of Bee-Train series are also great examples: they really use their music as part of the storytelling, and while they have a lot of first halves that are goofing off, they’re actively building their setting and characters in a way that perhaps sounds really boring on paper, but gets the viewer really familiar with them in practice. Plus, say what you want about Bee-Train: their series all start with a lot of creativity. That’s what I like.

But this also goes for things as very good acting, believable characters. Something needs to grab me, and most of the times this isn’t the story, but rathe the way in which it’s told. I know that this sounds a bit against what I said previously, that I want series with creative premises, but that’s the thing as well: there is a deal of subjectivity in here. It’s not something you can explain so easily. On one hand, the story doesn’t matter the most, but on the other hand: there’s not so much you can do when you start off like every other show with a bunch of teenagers who fight with magic and are on a high school.

So yeah, if I insulted your favorite show, I absolutely don’t hate you or anything. It’s just that I don’t like the series, and I’ve been disappointed too many times by similar series to really get excited about it. If you insult me about having a bad taste, then that’s not magically going to change my taste for the better. The great thing about this world is that everyone has different tastes, and this blog really is purely written from the perspective of my own.

Exactly. I don’t always agree with psgels on which shows have potential, but I always agree that only a handful have any potential. I don’t think it’s a bad thing to ignore shows that have shitty premises. There are plenty of people who watch any shit show that comes out, and if those people let us know that a show is actually good, psgels can always try it out later. There’s no need for him to waste his time on them otherwise.

Psgels man. Don’t worry about the fanboys and weeabos that can’t handle criticism about their beloved 101st school girl panty flash series or the 67th Sengoku era samurai show.

I imagine some folks do have legitimate points, but you screen for and watch anime based on your preferences. It’s why I track both Starcrossed and Random Curiosity, so I can get differing opinions on a show before deciding whether to commit to watching it.

And honestly I found it pretty funny how you established a dump bin of all the shows you don’t want to watch and why.

“Don’t worry about the fanboys and weeabos that can’t handle criticism about their beloved 101st school girl panty flash series or the 67th Sengoku era samurai show.
I imagine some folks do have legitimate points, but you screen for and watch anime based on your preferences. It’s why I track both Starcrossed and Random Curiosity, so I can get differing opinions on a show before deciding whether to commit to watching it.
And honestly I found it pretty funny how you established a dump bin of all the shows you don’t want to watch and why.”

YES! Seriously Psgels, MAN THE FUCK UP! Lift some weights, Cut down some fucking trees if you have to! YOu need some more testosterone so that you realize you don’t have to take shit from anyone, ESPECAILLY the fanboys listed in the above post. ignore all the haters, Do not address them, do not write a long ass post explaining shit! Do not pass go, do not collect $200, you don’t have to explain Jack shit to these fools, if they don’t like what you have to write, and aren’t willing to discuss it, they can go jack off to some other pedo-otakubait praising blog and drool all over all the underage panty shots they can handle.

Anime is sick right now, I am actually ashamed that I still watch it, the way it is now, I’d NEVER let anyone know that I am interested, not to mention all the limp wrist, pasive agressive on website weaboos, and weirdos that seem to poison the fanbase and help proliferate crap shows.

I’d say you do the same thing you did in the last post for every single damn season untill shit starts to get better, Then DONT RESPOND IN COMMENTS, AT ALL, you don’t have to explain shit to anyone.

I would have to agree with you psgels. I have been reading your blog for years, and have received a ton of fantastic series from this. Mushishi, Mononoke, Shiki, Mahou Shoujo Tai, and those are just a few. I feel like creativity is one structure area that the anime industry could revamp quite a bit, and not continue to become so generic every season. [your example: “every other show with a bunch of teenagers who fight with magic and are on a high school”. It seems to me after watching anime for a long time that more studios should follow what Aku no Hana did and stretch onto a different level of anime. Cowboy Bebop did that back in 98′ in my personal opinion.

Just a thought here:

Here is an idea, take Noitamina for example have them run a detective series acting as two series in that timeslot for 1 cour. The first half of the timeslot is dedicated to one character in the plot, and the second half of the timeslot is from the perspective of another detective or antagonist, when the perspective character in either timeslot dies, or any situation that removes them from the story it switches perspectives and overall tone of the following episode[s] in their respective timeslot. Whether it be art direction, plot, music, op animation, etc.

Ganbare yo! You obviously have taste – but too many people these days want 300 flavors to choose from, as long all of them are vanilla. Your reasons to like or dislike the advertised premises of next season’s lineup are absolutely spot-on: Are they based on interesting premises, is there a chance they’ll be well executed, and what does my gut tell me? I credit you for doing enough preliminary research (studio’s cred, who directs, etc.), which is why I love your blog. I also know you’ll give some of these not-so-promising shows the benefit of the one-episode doubt, just like many of us do. But life’s too short to watch every dumbass video game, LN adaptation, sequel to lame series, fanservice, whatever…

Your blog, your rules, psgels. Simple as that. And I do appreciate that you’re trying to explain your reasoning behind it, but – excuse me – I find it a bit unconvincing. FWIW.

This is the line where we simply have to agree to disagree:

“And consider this: I could have left these series out completely, but that’s dismissing them even more.”

No. If you had simply went with “I’m not interested because”, then I’m with you. But you didn’t. You wrote along the lines of “This show sucks because”. In my eyes this is a significant difference, and when you go THERE, reputable anime bloggers have an obligation to know what they’re talking about. If you don’t, I’d rather write nothing. Nihil nisi bene.

“Let me explain my taste here, and what I’m looking for: I’m looking for the big picture. I’m looking for a series that has a good story, an intriguing setting, solid and fun characters, interesting visuals, great music.”

Reads great, but do you seriously think you can gauge that by ANN summaries? I don’t, sorry.

Anyway, like I wrote. Your blog, your rules. You’ll be just fine with one reader less. Good luck!

Frankly I think we’ll all be better off without you here demanding that people articulate themselves perfectly clearly and neutrally, or not at all. We’re talking about anime here, not important sociopolitical issues. There’s no shortage of blogs or forums to discuss blandly popular teenager’s anime. They don’t require or want defending if they can’t show even the remotest hints of leaving a positive first impression, and no amount of sugarcoating will make that bitter pill go down smoothly. Besides, if all psgels has to go on is an ANN blurb he’s generally more fair to anime in these previews. Just pretending he isn’t doesn’t make it true.

Truly a terrible day for us all. Mentar decided to stop reading psgels blog. We shall always remember you for your five total posts and general stupidity.
Mentar leaves and not a f*ck was given that day.

Some people just can’t come to terms with the fact that the series they like might indeed be garbage. As for me, I’ve seen more cases of a series triggering good flags and then sucking than the opposite.
Additionally, when something is somewhat good despite the premise, the buzz ends up getting to you anyway. I think that was the case for a lot of us with NouCome – terrible premise, but ended up being fun. But still, “terrible premise” is a failure at communication BY ITSELF. People won’t watch ALL first episodes. Which first episodes they’ll watch depends on ANN summaries, PVs, and similar stuff. Not everyone will “research” by reading the source material. If an anime fails at catching your attention with these simple elements, it’s already failing. Rule No.1 of advertisement: get them in as short a time as possible. Simple as that.

While that’s all true, one thing to remember is that no one creates promotional material with the goal of appealing to everyone. They create it with the goal of appealing to those more likely to watch that particular category of show.

I mean, there’s no reason that for a studio to advertise an incest-themed show to anime fans like psgels. Rest assured that they understand the rules of advertising/marketing.

Absolutely true. So to specify: if they fail to appeal to you despite you being its target audience. The alternative is that the anime in question is indeed a pile of incest-harem-generic crap and thus psgels was never meant to be in the target audience – which basically means the producers themselves are perfectly okay with him thinking this anime is shit.

(Personally, I think this is the case. But you never know. And sometimes even the producers don’t immediately realize what the target audience is or could be – just look at My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

I never really took your “not interested in” section to mean that the shows were bad, merely that they didn’t grab you on sight. Which is totally reasonable. Certain things have more interesting premises than others. Does that mean that the shows with more generic premises will automatically be horrible? No, of course not. A series is not made on premise alone. However, when talking about which show interests you before they come out, premise is one of a select few things you have to go on. So go right ahead, man. There’s nothing wrong with saying that a series doesn’t grab you by its key visuals, summary, or teaser trailers alone. In fact, it would be weird if you found every single premise immediately enticing.

Well, the problem as i see it. It,s that he hasn,t bothered to put a potential rate in shows that he isn,t just interested and the pros/cons doesn,t seems very elaborate neither fair.

We should asoume that for him all that series are below 40% in potential? Because with all that people saying that it,s a bad sesson in overall,and I jus,t don,t buy it .A lot of that group with very few exceptions seems to be very decent premises, very few of then deserved to be discarted with only two lines.

Just because something doesn,t grab you it,s not like it,s imposible to talk about the staff and do a good analysis about the good and bad things that they have with a good reasoning then he could rate as he want, follow what he want and score as his tastes.

And if he think that is too work, well, it,s posible to take it more relaxed. We are only at february, the spring cour stars in april. I would have prefered to have seen posted it in one more month later, but done with the care that it used to have.

And to add things he is starting to exclude kids shows, and Movies, Ovas, since a lot of sesons.

If you can hand me the time to talk about every single series in the season, then sure, I will take a good look at it.

Regarding the kids’ shows, I used to write about every single show, including the ones aimed at little kids. Do you know how tiring it is to write the same thing over and over and over again in every single season? I mean there’s nothing to say about them and they all just look the same.

As for the movies and OVAs: I checked on Moon Phase’s list. Aside perhaps from the Anime Mirai and the Mouretsu Pirates movie, there’s nothing else that even remotely interests me. It’s my blog, so why should I still cover it, then?

I’m not sure why you’re hung up on the whole incest thing, that’s a pretty fine thing to see as a red flag for a show. And there are plenty of other reasons to pre-drop Mahouka as well, it’s very much on the level of SAO when it comes to creative storytelling. My comment was more in regards to other things.

Actually, to be honest, I’m mostly just offended that Mari Okada tripe gets an instant 80%.

I guess psgels is hung up on the incest thing because it’s a trope that needs to DIE IN FIRE! EVERY FRICKEN season we get some stupid show that uses incest as a plot point. Just think for a bit, do you get that many TV shows in the USA that has incest or siblings crushing on each other??? No you don’t!! Japan is just wayyyy too obsessed with it.

The only time I’ve seen incest used properly was in Koi Kaze, otherwise it’s just been annoying and gross.

Anyway .. thanks for the hard work psgels. While I might not necessarily agree with some of your choices that’s fine as it’s just a first impression anyway. For me this season I had completely written off ‘Witchcraft Works’ as something lame but that has been surprisingly funny and entertaining as long as it’s not trying to take itself seriously.

In defense of the Japanese I’m pretty sure it’s not that they’re obsessed with incest so much as it’s an easy sell if your plot revolves around a boy and girl living together. It’s a nice fantasy for lonely people. Lazy writing leads this to being incest.

So most of the time a premise that includes incest is taking the lazy option when writing about a lazy premise. Of course most of those stories are going to be poorly written and boring.

My initial point being that Japanese people probably want to bone their siblings about as much as Americans do.

It is totally appropriate for an anime blogger to give an anime show the exact same chance they would give any other kind of TV show. And frankly, most sane people don’t spend much time contemplating that. They look at the premise and maybe at the stars, and decide in about thirty seconds. They might change their minds if they hear a recommendation later, but usually they never will.

I suppose that it can be said that you do not always put a lot of detective work into investigating the source material of shows, but I think that it would be difficult to say that you are typically unfair about your willingness to give works a fair shot, even if your first impressions might be interpreted as suggesting otherwise. If anything you are much too kind to the medium in general. From this side of things you appear to invest more time than many works even deserve verifying your impressions, especially considering that this is a hobby and not something you are paid to suffer through.

It also strikes me as hilarious that dismissing yet another incest subplot qualifies one as an elitist flamer these days. Here in the realm of normal humans that would be considered a pretty mundane frustration. The abundance of that kind of schlock typically serves to discredit the medium amongst the absolute mainstream, rather than existing as a prejudice of the intelligentsia.

I read this blog because I feel you review anime for its own sake and not just for the attention that being a blogger nets you. As soon as I start feeling like you are attempting to conform your opinions to up your readership or to make begrudging readers like you more I will probably stop reading your blog.

I’m like you. I only watch a few shows at a time and I don’t give what I believe to be lost causes chances. The reason why I need this blog to be what it is is because you seem to have a penchant for finding the good in shows that I otherwise wouldn’t see. As soon as you start giving concessions to shows you really don’t believe in, your word will become less meaningful and I will be better off just going by my own instinct.

I also prefer the in depth reviews that you write of the few shows you do watch even if they do seem to be weeks apart these days.

This is your blog, which expresses your opinion. I follow your blog because I have read enough of your posts to have a read on what your style and preferences are, and have decided I want to know what your opinion is because I find it valuable.

The unfortunate truth is that there’s no such thing as universal consensus. Anyone who expresses a preference one way or another is going to piss off a certain part of the fandom. The question is whether you’re more interested in maintaining popularity or giving an honest critique and/or love letter to a subject you love. I hope you’ll stay true to your love.

Mahouka is screwed. But it wouldn’t be incest that screws it- not incest alone anyway. It’s screwed because it’s source is an exposition, internal narrative and world-building story. Even if they were to minimize and de-prioritize Haremish and Incestous elements, it’s going to be about as bad as Maou Maou Yuusha, because it would take a very good producer to really take that world-building centric and internal narrative-centric source material, and make a great story from there.

But odds are, it wouldn’t. The worldbuilding would be scrambled, confused, and full of plotholes. The plotholes would be filled with overly emphasized Incest, Rom-com and Harem cliches that the producers think would sell the BDs,way beyond the source materials. The most interesting parts of the source material would be thrown in at random, haphazardly and in a disjointed manner.

At worst, Mahouka is the second coming of Infinite Stratos. At best, Mahouka is the second coming of Maou Maou Yuusha. Either prospects are grim to consider for fans of the series.

Of course, I could be pleasantly surprised, but having seen so many LNs completely butchered during the process of translation into anime, especially when these LNs tend to focus on the internal, silent thoughts of their characters, I think cynicism about Mahouka is the best course of action here. Animes tend to be horrible at adapting material where the point of view of it’s characters are critical, and much of it is internal. Monogatari is an exception here, not the rule.

It just so happens, psgels, that you are one of the first bloggers to attack Mahouka. And among LN readers, Mahouka is well regarded by a large fanbase, for reasons that are not likely to be translated into the anime medium, at least, without a very good producer.

In that sense, you were perhaps slightly more unlucky for being the first to throw a stone at Mahouka – a week or two later, and the Mahouka fans would be fighting wars on a hundred different other fronts.

When an anime adaptation of Mahouka was announced, a very common reaction was: how are they going to even adapt Mahouka, because so many elements of Mahouka are very difficult to adapt to an anime? Based on the tendency of LN adaptations, I think the answer is that they will fail.

The anime is going to be insipid, uninspired, incoherent and fanservice centric, much in the same way Infinite Stratos 2 choose to emphasize fanservice over plot. It’s going to ignite a firestrom in the Anime blogosphere and forums (and unfortunately, you stepped into the very first embers of that firestorm) , will end with 10K+ BD sales, and would have a second season announced, and earn the hatred of a good chunk of it’s LN fanbase, in the same way Infinite Stratos 2 has been reviled by LN readers. In that respect, Mahouka is not exceptional. And that’s the depressing reality.

I would be quite happy if it turns out to be as good as Maoyū Maō Yūsha. Maoyū may have been a bit of a mess that was too rushed and had plotholes, too much fanservice, and a few elements that didn’t translate well from the LN, but it had so many good points too, such as the titular (no pun intended) female character’s complexity and the speech given by the big sister maid. Plus the socio-economic/poliitcal stuff makes for good intrigue.

Psgels, there’s no need to explain. The kind of people you are appealing to are unreasonable and remarkably idiotic. I have written posts as long as yours to talk with a friend over MAL so I know you are not exaggerating when you say it takes half a day of your non working hours.
It’s your blog, do what you want. Say what you want. Your true fans will respect that.

Detailed explanation, but it’s muddied by use of buzzwords. What you’ve described as aspects of your big picture doesn’t require creativity to pull off. Being a good execution of by-the-book is enough too. No need to clutter what you really want with needless (and frankly counterproductive) justifications. I think your last bit summarizes it nicely; something creative (outside the box) and portrayed in an engaging way.

What I find ironic is that those people who bashed Psgels for being narrow-minded in his preview summaries, only gave a rat’s ass because just that one series that they like is on his “not looking forward to” list. The quick use of terms such as “elitist”, “smart-aleck” and “hater” is very telling.

I don’t feel that you have become too harsh in your critique of anime each season. You’ve always been more concerned with quality than quantity, and in recent years, the quantity of anime has definitely increased with only few quality series. I too am looking out for any promising series that is different from the loads of harem/incest we get each season.

“Psgels man. Don’t worry about the fanboys and weeabos that can’t handle criticism…”
–
“Frankly I think we’ll all be better off without you here demanding that people articulate themselves perfectly clearly and neutrally, or not at all”
–
“Truly a terrible day for us all. Mentar decided to stop reading psgels blog. We shall always remember you for your five total posts and general stupidity.
Mentar leaves and not a f*ck was given that day”
–
“Psgels, there’s no need to explain. The kind of people you are appealing to are unreasonable and remarkably idiotic”

*********

Maybe you didn’t realize, but there are people here who are doing the same. If someone is criticizing Psgels, some of you quickly jump, because the latter has good taste and the former is wrong. >synkronized stfu”. Dissing and calling people idiotic because they have different opinion is really rude and childish. So yeah, in the end you are not better.

And I don’t think these bunch of ragtags here really doing a favor for Psgels and the other respectful followers. Nope, you guys just make it worse.

mentioned~
“Don’t worry about the fanboys and weeabos that can’t handle criticism” …
Well, it seems some followers can’t handle it either and just lash out against everyone who dare to say something bad. This is actually funny, because they’re not even the target of the criticism. Just the usual “If you don’t like X

Well I do agree that Psgels has good taste (courtesy of years giving crtical analysis of anime), and despite all the negative feedback he received he remains largely neutral with his responses. I think that is worth defending.

Evidently, his neutral stance is not enough for fans of the relevant series.

In every debate there will be those in each side who use derogatory terms in lieu of concrete arguments.

My point in the previous response was that if Psgels had given a better impression of those series, the fans wouldnt even have cared to lash out as though it was a personal attack. I believe Psgels has always been this level of critical with anime, and he’s not being ‘elitist’ or ‘smart-alecked’ when he is giving his thoughts on an anime preview.

No, being childish is telling somebody that you no longer value their opinions because you think they’re prejudging an ANIME too harshly. If you’re that hurt by psgels calling it like he sees it, then just stop reading aniblogs entirely. Especially if you can’t take some immature criticism of your own immaturity. If you’re going to morally grandstand about something this irrelevant then you might just deserve to be called an idiot (whether I’m one or not doesn’t really need to be pointed out, because as we all know it takes one to know one).

Ron Ron Ron…how is it that you can call us out on something like that yet completely fail to see the very hypocrisy of doing so.
Let me just make this Crystal clear. You are calling us out on calling other peoples idiots because they were calling the blogger an idiot. And in turn you call us idiots for doing so.
So by your own logic you are also an idiot. Except you are playing moral high ground idiot. Which in my opinion is significantly worse.

Well Mike technically the guy is calling himself an idiot and doesn’t realise he’s doing so. I was just pointing out the hypocrisy of his actions.

As for my attitude, mate I ain’t here to make friends. I know full well my attitude ain’t exactly what you would call friendly. I am a condescending egotistical bastard. I judge people for their opinions on anime tv shows and know full well just how pointless and childish that is. But of course what makes me different from your bargin bin internet bastard is that I recongise and won’t even deny these claims.
Of course I am only like this to those I do not respect. And quite frankly I see no reason to give a complete stranger my respect. Everyone has a right to an opinion but what people often forget is that everyone also has a right to have an opinion on someones opinion. You want me to not act like an ass to someone, they have to earn my respect. That the way I roll.

Hey psgels! I began reading your blog because I tough we liked the same kind of show. I understood later that was not true, but my taste is still very close to yours. The way you did that last preview is fine, don’t worry about it!

The problem here is you used clear definitive statemsnts, of evaluation like “Boring show” or derogatory ones like [this is] “ridcously stupid” with a great number of shows which and the end of the day you did not watch yet. So of course people who are fans of various source materials manga/light novels reacted badly. It is really biside the point here wheter they are right or wrong about any show in particualar , they all have rather reasonable assumption that people who actually seen those shows in one medium or another have a better idea whether the show in question is crap or not then you do.
Really a trailer or a summary simply is not enough to make some of the judgements you put in that last post and be fair about it.

I disagree. As psgels points out he’s basing his predictions on premise as well as staff. He’s been doing this long enough that, compared to a manga fan, he probably has a much better understanding of what to expect from certain directors, writers and production companies. The source material doesn’t matter if the people making it have a track record of terrible adaptations.

As for how he words things it’s because he’s an interesting person that’s worth reading. Most people don’t want to hear some PC crap like “I personally feel, based on my own tastes and bias, that this will probably not be a series I enjoy. You may disagree, and I could be wrong of course, so let’s all hold judgement for the actual release while we hold hands and sing songs while pretty birds fly over our heads.” It’s far more entertaining to read psgel’s quips. And really, it’s about entertainment, not being an impartial boring critic.

People who reacted harshly to psgel’s harshness should have thought about it before opening their e-wordholes. Seriously… how many anime have been lame (or even horrible) adaptations? It’s just not reasonable to think that fans of the source material will “know any better”. It’s fine to say “come on, give it a shot, the source material’s better than the preview implies.” But going on some tirade because psgels was harsh about a preview is ridiculous. Just how bad does a first impression have to be before you’ll accept that he has a point? Fairness does not exist for first impressions – that’s the whole point. Doubly so when you’re demanding objectivity from them. There’s no point in reading his previews if you don’t think anyone infer enough about them to give their honest first impressions. You won’t win anyone over by pretending you know better and demanding fairness in a venue where neither of those things can truly be. Being righteous about something this trivial wastes everyone’s time.

Everyone likes what they like, Psgels. Don’t feel bad about that! We all have our own likes and dislikes, so feel free to watch what you like without any worries! If someone bashes you for your taste, they’re not worth your time.

I agree with you psgels. I’m surprised you didn’t just omit everything that was terrible in your season preview, because it’s bound to be forgotten and dismissed anyway by everyone after the first episode or two. You should only focus on the shows you like.

I really love anime but i will admit that i think that a good 80% of it is complete garbage. I depend on psgels to sift through that garbage and find shows that are worth watching and that’s the only reason to read this blog. Every year i look forward to your year summary to find the top 20 anime that are worth watching during the year and to binge watch the ones i like.

Thank you for all the work you put into this blog, i hope to see it running for a long time from now.

If you are allowed to like an anime even before it aired, then why not vice-versa? Sure, you may have seen the source material and think it’s good, but there’s already too many cases an adaptation is worse than its source material.

Psgels, I’ve been quietly reading your blog for years. It’s my first go-to place for anime reviews has introduced me to many anime I’ve come to love. I really appreciate that you don’t waste your time watching/reviewing things you don’t like; that means I don’t have to waste my time either. And I agree with you that the last couple of seasons have been disappointing, but I’m glad you’re keeping at it. Thank you for all your work!

I find it kind of funny that a few got so angry. I mean, I’ve followed your blog for years, and you’re seldom wrong when it comes to -actually- good shows. I know your disdain for crappy moe incest shows, and it’s part of what makes what you write worth reading.

There are many, many anime reviewers out there but YOU are my favorite. If you like a show there’s a 90% chance I will too. Same with the shows you dislike. I know other reviewers who just give pleasant reviews on every old thing and that doesn’t help me at all. And then there are reviewers who have clearly different tastes than me and I don’t read them, simple as that. Also, I like how you add your opinion and analysis in reviews. If I just wanted to know what happened in a series I could read Wikipedia! Thank you psgels!!!!

psgels: I’m just going to be reiterating what everyone else has already said, but there is ABSOLUTELY NO NEED FOR YOU TO JUSTIFY YOURSELF. People who can’t take your opinions shouldn’t be reading your blog; there’s no need to be a ‘people-pleaser’ (not insinuating that you are one, either, just a statement of fact) and let’s face it, this is your website, this is your space, and you should be allowed as much to write whatever you feel, diss whatever series you like, compliment others, and etcetera.

Personally, I’ve always trusted your taste on what is good and what is bad, but even then I still watch most of the first episodes of each season before forming my own opinions from there because everyone is different, and what you think sucks I may think is absolutely wonderful, and even though I trust you and your taste in anime, I still want to be the one who passes final judgement on what I watch. so, the people who are flaming you obviously either
(a) are trolls and just want to be assholes for no apparent reason
(b) are unopinionated weaklings who watch whatever you recommend and feel that they are missing out because of this (even though it’s because they’re backbone-less followers)
(c) just need to get the fuck off a website that’s too good for them.

Yes, so to wrap up that very irrelevant chunk up above, you’re wonderful, keep doing whatever you do, and don’t let the h8ers get you down. ♥

Haters gonna hate. Same morons who can’t see the trainwrecks coming up are just like those same idiots who bitched and moaned with Rob Halford was replaced by Ripper Owens (who is a very talented singer in his own right) in Judas Priest for awhile back in the late 90’s – early 2000’s. You just can’t reason with people who are so entrenched in their fandom that they can’t see what’s wrong with it.

psgels: I agree with what you have said in this post. A lot of people out there forget that Anime bloggers – like critics – are human, and have a life outside of just blogging anime. While I still think it might have been better to choose slightly more diplomatic words for a preview of something, I could definitely understand dismissing a show because of its premise. God knows how many times I’ve done that – and to good shows, too, like Spice and Wolf.

That being said, though, it was uncomfortable reading the comments section because I honestly had the feeling that a lot of your defenders are every bit as rabid as the the ‘haters’ to the blog. It’s nothing against you, since I feel you responded to your detractors in a mature manner, and there are certainly a number of very mature supporters of the blog; however, so many of the responses were along the lines of ‘lol those haters have terrible tastes in anime’ and other posts like this that…well, it’s a bit unsettling, I guess.

I have no problem with you being a harsher critic, as long as you still try to give the 1st episodes a shot. If you hate the first episode then by all means drop it.

Granted, I can think of a couple shows you dropped (blogging at least) this way and regretted later (Kokoro Connect for example), but all in all in works 95% of the time (as long as you trust in your experience with anime).

I’ve always thought our tastes were quite similar, but I do know they will never completely overlap. I am much more forgiving than you so I enjoy a lot more series than you normally, but I typically have the same top 3 or so series every season as you.

Hahahaha, well I only want to see some of the best shows that this season has to offer, i has to disagree whit pgels like´s in times and in anothers times not, is normal. But i consider pgels to be very correct in his bloggins and this is why i choise to follow them. I dont understand why some people are soooo upset about the last post.

I remember being a regular visitor of this blog back when you had all the time in the world and would do episode by episode reviews of a ton of animes every season, and I would always come here to see what you and everyone else thought right after watching an episode because I knew your post would be up

The funny thing is you started to get busy around the same time I started to lose my interest in anime, so I naturally just stopped checking out the blog and forgot about it for a while

Its been so long now since Ive had a new anime I felt was worth watching past the first 3 episodes, I decided to come here and I saw the seasonal preview and this post, and I have to lol

Im glad to know Im not the only one who thinks anime is in the shithole right now… Its really really sad what has happened to it
A few years ago, there used to be at least 4-5 shows per season worth watching, nowadays I struggle to find even one… Everything is the same damn teenagers piloting huge mechas, school couple with magic powers, retarded harem that makes my IQ drop by the second whose first episode consists of a girl randomly falling on top of a guy and exposing her panties

Its a disgrace… Where are the mature themed anime with smart dialogue and interesting characters/character development? You cant even count on Noitamina to deliver quality anime anymore since Guilty Crown turned the slot into more mainstream garbage

I dont understand how anyone can defend these shitty animes with a straight face… To those people, go educate yourself and watch some of the masterpieces we had in the last 2 decades, such as Monster (then again youll probably say its “boring” because it doesnt shove panties in your face every 5 seconds)

Now watch as Mahouka turns out to be the best anime of the season demonstrating the perfect way to handle incest-magic-school anime. It’s fans all come with a resounding “I told you so!” while completely missing the point of the matter.

While i agree with Psgels, and what others had said before me, regarding its his site, his rules and his ways of doing things. I do Also love to see Psgels covering shows that were discarded for him for all the right reasons on his mind, but that turned out to be good, i an special section under this blog, like something under the title second shot or something he likes more.

Also, if Psgels find it worth it, change the score of old titles been reviwed by him. If they deserve more or less score or changing the final recomendation of the show. Case in point, Welcome to the NHK, which Psgels gave an score an a recomendation that later he did find to be better looking in retrospect.

I think with this things he, and we the followers can give some good series a chance, even when in the first glimpse looked they could turn bad.

Oh, yeah, hey, I’d like to comment and say that I totally agree with you. You’re reasonable, psgels! You’re good and you’re right about everything. It really takes some balls to come out and say your opinions on anime, and for that, I have to be congratulating you now! Thanks for being such good at anime blogging for all of this time. Never once have you wavered in your commitment, even when people told you to “grow up” or get “a job”! We need more people like you in this world…

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Vonter: I'm not wholly against fillers if they are done correctly, sometimes they can be a short moment of peace in a characters hellish life, sometimes they can be amusing or flesh out characters or allow good character chhemistry.

Kaiser-Eoghan
That time I got reincarnated an daikmura in another world =)

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Vonter: I remember there is a review somewhere on this blog of an anime adaptation of Les Miserables, I've only seen the film 1990s adaptation though. I wonder if any of those classic book anime adaptations are actually worth watching?

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Vonter: I may have sounded like I was being down on Mahou Asuka, the manga became a decent guilty pleasure, I agree with you on action and pace but I prefer the anime designs, though I stopped watching the anime because of the speedlines/animation/pace, the dub is hilarious though.

Vonter
I do wonder if there has ever been stated how much time or pages you have in either medium. Since that was mentioned in the adaptation of Les Miserables, 300 pages to fit all one could of that novel, even joking about how a character only appeared in one page because of that limitation.

Vonter
Overlord is another one I wonder if it might work better as a visual novel. Mainly because the anime is dialogue heavy and where I think it has stumbled is that it has a lot of characters to ever give the needed time to develop each of them. Season 2 had several episodes focusing on a weak lizardman tribe.

Vonter
Mahou Asuka, I think it might work better in manga format. The anime while not the worst thing, drags a lot for what it has delivered. The manga I think it has better art, composition, but it mainly comes and goes way faster. Because it supposed to be more action than narrative in this case. It could be said the same thing of Triage.

Vonter
I've been thinking about the use of time and narrative time in both manga and anime. I suppose the anime studios have to hit a certain number of episodes which demand stretching the run of a story in any way. Filler episode? Several episodes to build up a dramatic scene? Bringing something that doesn't add anything important?

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Lenlo: Actually I can sort of understand how you feel, after I read the flashbacks to dororo's parents , the some chapter after felt a bit inferior to that.

Lenlo
I appreciate the keepin me in check though! Sometimes writing these posts makes me feel I have to be "critical" and I think that can skew my writing at times.

Lenlo
Like I said Kaiser, I feel that whatever Dororo did this week would have to live up to episode 6, and that was a nigh impossible task. I still enjoy the series, it just had a bit of a hitch for me is all.,

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Lenlo: Dororo's anime will give you a confrontation with the brother, curb your expectations with Daigo, Dororo's past is excellent. But it will still do episodic stuff.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Vonter: I actually watched it alongside reading those mahou shoujo Asuka chapters due to you putting both in the same sentence.

Vonter
Kinda like the Batman series of the 90s. Which happens to have better stories and characters plus the dark atmosphere.

Vonter
Yeah, it's hard to explain but it's a series I'll recommend in regards to the mood and atmosphere it conveys, moreso than the story or characters. It makes me wish that some other anime with better stories had a bit more weight in terms of atmosphere since I think this one does it with very few elements.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Vonter: I remember a mazinger reference in there too, also one of the buildings says Dagon on it, which fits very well I think.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Vonter: It felt like a full series take on a ova that I always wanted.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Vonter: the 90s artstyle/lighting/atmosphere definitely helped and there was some of the psychological bit in there.

Vonter
Also I might be wrong, but I can't recall a female counterpart that has ever exceeded the original. So by design Devilman Lady has an uphill battle, but I do like that she's not an Akira 2.0 the character has her own conflicts and ore than the monsters it seems to be a duality between her supermodel job and her actual self. Which at least its something.

Vonter
@Kaiser-Eoghan - I'm glad at least it kept your interest. Devilman Lady while not as infuential it's an interesting time capsule of the type of horror in the 80s. It's a bit sci fi and a bit supernatural like the Guyver. What standed out to me was the mood, it sort of leaves you in a trance when it just let the visuals and music immerse you.

Kaiser-Eoghan
Also, Return of the king/Kaiser and stuff, new computer arrived early.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Amagi: I read the recent beastars chapters, though I hope they eventually get back to focusing on Haru x legosi soon.

Kaiser-Eoghan
They finally translated another 7 seeds chapter, I think its nearing its endgame.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Vonter: There was a hilariously dumb scene where one of the mascots pull out double guns.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Vonter: Some 4channer posted further on scans from magical girl spec ops, I read 5 volumes, doesn't have much of plot, they explained who cyborg guy was and introduced another magical girl villain with a shitty childhood and some obvious hinting as to who The queen is.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Vonter: That is isn't the original devilman, nor does it exceed it.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Vonter: My spare laptop managed to survive long enough for me to marathoned devilman lady, albeit in SD quality, I enjoyed it for what it was and that it never made a joke of its trashiness, Nagai's imagination in creature design continues to be fun. The only thing I can really call it out n is....

Kaiser-Eoghan
I've been continuing that manga by the author of aku no hana, the one about the kid with the psycho mother, its increasingly threatening.

Kaiser-Eoghan
Also, regarding dororo, there was a chapter in the manga with some lord and a moth woman he unknowingly fell in with, this week was anime original but kind of had a human/monster relation thing going on, the manga was less sympathetic.

Kaiser-Eoghan
I liked the part between yuki and Kakeru , additionally, I'm looking forward to seeing the full background for Haiji aswell. I'm running out of things to say about the show.

Anonymous3444196
This last stretch of episodes is going to be good, so I heard from that novel reader. As long as the production doesn't derail itself, we're in for a treat.

Anonymous3444196
It's pretty obvious that with Haiji being the one running the final section of the Ekiden, that this might be his last.

Anonymous3444196
I do think that there'll be an episode of downtime between the episodes covering the 1st and 2nd days of the marathon. And maybe we'll finally get to see Haiji's past prior to his leg injury.

Anonymous3444196
So there's 5 episodes left, and it'll cover both days of the Ekiden since it's split into two sections. I heard from the novel reader that the 10th and final chapter is over 100 pages long, so having 5 episodes should be enough to cover everything. Shindo's running last in the 1st half but he's got a cold, which does bring some concern.

Anonymous3444196
Seems like a pretty slow week here. Anyhow, in this Kaze ga ,we're at the final stretch before the Ekiden next episode. Really liked Fujioka's speech at the start. They're also starting to unravel more on Haiji's past as well.

Kaiser-Eoghan
ahahahaha so that was it, she is voiced by Kana Hanazawa.

Kaiser-Eoghan
Something that came to mind when watching that quintuplets show, somehow the archetype I ended up going for was Ichika's character somehow. Never usually the case.

Kaiser-Eoghan
Y'know usually its fairly consistent, traits I notice/like/am attracted to most in a character's appearence and then there are those odd cases where I somehow end up finding a character attractive or something that I'd usually never.

Kaiser-Eoghan
New computer on its way now, 24 inch screen, wireless everything, 1000gb, got it for only 800 euro.

Kaiser-Eoghan
The current laptop I've got on loan I'm using is kind of a pain to use, makes doing anything including typing/posting/watching slow, its a ropey old windows millenium edition laptop that I'd stopped using years ago.@Amagi: Also a sequel to legend of koizumi has been translated.

Vonter
The cutscenes in that game kinda look a bit off, like with the Dragon Prince show they look a bit choppy.

Anonymous3425269
Personally, I'm really hoping that Orange did them so they can gain more recognition working on a big franchise.

Anonymous3425269
I'm guessing Orange, Polygon or GEMBA did the CG cutscenes for the new Fire Emblem. They look too different from Echoes' CG cutscenes to come from Khara.

Kaiser-Eoghan
It was always the second Zelda game I never played, that one is frowned upon.

Vonter
I see Majora's Mask and Ocarina of Time as two halves of a single whole. Ocarina had the standard story but expanded from what was set in A Link to the Past. Majora's Mask has more in common to Link's Awakening being more about the characters you meet, and even Link himself. I think one has what the other doesn't. Ocarina had better dungeons, but Majora had more involved and menaningful sidequest.

Kaiser-Eoghan
The remastered ocarina of time soundtrack is some of my favourite videogame music out there.

Kaiser-Eoghan
I know its not ranked among the best Zelda games, but links awakening was the first zelda game I played in the early 90s, I also remember they re-released a colour version of it too that allowed you to do extra stuff with the gameboy camera and printer.

Vonter
So Nintendo had a Direct. A sequel to Mario Maker, a remake to Link's Awakening, a Tetris Battle Royale game, a new game from Platinum games called Astral Chain, a school type Fire Emblem, etc.

Kaiser-Eoghan
I guess if I was asked why I did anything, including if it was some game/sport or if I was a runner I'd probably answer the question by saying I was in it for a laugh or for a genuine good time because it'd be something I'd be enjoying.

Lenlo
@Kaiser, Dororo was awesome. This was a great week and arc. Mio is best girl.

Lenlo
Look, if the ending can make it work, I will forgive the CGI runners. But you have to admit, they don't look good

Anonymous3419991
@Lenlo But for now, you'll just have to grin and bear it when the next preliminary races prior to the Ekiden use CG for the background runners.

Anonymous3419991
I heard from a novel reader that the book is 10 chapters long, and this is currently adapting chapter 8. Chapter 10 covering the Ekiden is the longest part of the novel and will probably be covered in 3 episodes. Hope IG is saving all their resources on this finale judging by the CG used in previous episodes.

Anonymous3419991
It's also great to see how far Kurahana has come since the start. Even when confronting Sakaki being arrogant and all.

Anonymous3419991
And so this episode of Kaze ga is a breather episode, but we do get some more character development with the twins. It's nice to see Fujioka again.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Lenlo: I would happily have watched two more episodes of this arc in dororo.

Fuurophausiyuder
Speaking of loving hell fonts, I notice that the review body text, and this text here are both sans-serif; which sort of princess of variable typefaces is not present for this readability bit to land?

Fuurophausiyuder
Dororo is awesome for just the hell fonts. I kind of expect on-brand gazebos (the temple to the 10 demons) to sell well this summer at Lowe's, Restoration Hardware, RH, wherever it is actually okay stuff derives, etc. I was kind of hoping the transitional story would lift all transitional boats, but that storyline has gone to soil microbes in the USA diaspora (though you know, stay classy PR.)

Fuurophausiyuder
Kemurikusa is like Kemeko DX if all the chemicals were fentanyl and the promise of a plot muted by lingering death were only ever expected to be a possibility. What had anyone watching ep. 3...5? Clinical use?

Kaiser-Eoghan
I'm also glad that tv anime like this is allowed to be so violent in this day and age.

Kaiser-Eoghan
To be honest it really is the only new show this season I currently especially care about.

Kaiser-Eoghan
I decided to read the whole Dororo manga and I think this weeks episode was every bit as moving as the manga was while building on it. I think if adapted correctly dororo (the character)'s backstory, the stuff with Daigo's son will be a highlight. I do think they could get rid of shounen shark guy though later on and not bother including him.

Anonymous3415569
The other thing, is how both this and She Ra have the same premise of the main character changing from the villain to the heroic side. I don't know if that's a good pattern but it's and interesting way to build a female character in which the relationship with their old friends is a way to add pathos.

Anonymous3415569
It felt like a new version of inspector Gadget could be do like this. Considering how it frames the criminal organization (for kids). And also maybe a crossover could work?

Anonymous3415569
I watched the Carmen SanDiego Netflix series. It was ok. I did like the simple visual style and Saturday morning vibe. It's clearly more for a younger audience, yet it wasn't that boring. Still all I could think about while watching it were 2 things:

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Bothanons: Issues on both sides of the spectrum.@Wooper: Its the politest take you could get on that premise.@Mario: I think the anime skipped some stuff from the after the rain manga, I should probably read the manga.

SuperWooper
I heard that show was about a teenage girl's crush on an older man. Sounds pretty problematic to me. I'm with the rest of the Internet on this one.

SuperMario
Apparantly the other side of anime fandom (the internet) doesn’t watch Koi wa Ameagari

Lenlo
The reddit anime awards are done! I did it! I was on stream! Oh joy. Can talk about this now.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Niello: I have decided to adopt the same approach for the new True detective season also.

niello
@Eoghan: Exactly my thought three episodes in. I wish I realise it before I picked up the show, because I definitely need to watch those three episodes again.

Kaiser-Eoghan
I want to watch new boogiepop at some point, but I'm just hoping it ends so I can just marathon the show, it'd be too confusing to watch once a week, instead of straight through in one go.

Amagi
Oh I just realize it's the same team as HnK well that explains that.

Amagi
@Aidan: Unsure too about the trailer but it reminds me more of Houseki, qualitywise, and less of all the other bad CGI shows. I have hope. Same with Vinland. Trailer had some CGI and Thorkell's design feels a bit different but aside from that it was good.

SuperMario
Damn, just looked at the teaser of Beastars and I’m hooked. I’m hyped for the show

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Niello: Beastars is a good choice for them yes, as was Houseki no kuni, Majestic prince which they co-made was really underated back when it aired.

niello
I like how Orange Studio seems to have good eyes for manga. And it looks as if they are trying to go for stories that lets them avoid animating normal humans. So, ones that are more compatible with their CG visual. It'd be nice if this lead to some manga adaptation that won't happen otherwise.

Vonter
I think people get too worked up on Shield Hero. While not a great show, I have found it entertaining. I suppose the underdog aspect also got meta. With that said, I think if instead of the heroine reapplying the slave contract they should have made a contract or something like that, that felt one-sided.

Kaiser-Eoghan
I actually have more confidence in the cgi if its done by the houseki team.

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Aidan: When I talked to amagi about Beastars I don't think I ever heard your views on it. Also from what I recall you haven't read Vinland?

Kaiser-Eoghan
Years ago I read almost of Yoshihiro's stuff, although I never got around to finishing a drifting life by him, I also read that Mizuki guy manga i mentioned.

Kaiser-Eoghan
I've been wondering about this for a bit, is anyone on here familiar with the Gekiga period/wave of manga from the 50s and 60s to very early 70s? Such as stuff the by Yoshihiro Tatsumi and also Shigeru Mizuki's Onward toward noble death?

Kaiser-Eoghan
@Anon: I was right in there with them waiting to hear the results.

Kaiser-Eoghan
I'm glad that even though it showed then in a top ten list, they weren't up the top of it. Its more believable that way. Also who'd of though a race would be so tense?

Animosh
Also happy to see that the twins will get some spotlight next week. Aside from Musa they've had the least development so far, so they can use the attention. I also like that someone's finally raising the question what the point of it all is. If you have no chance of winning, why compete? It's a valid question, and I'm looking forward to hearing Haiji's answer.

Animosh
Haiji's injury was less of an issue than I expected: he even finished as "best of the rest" (excluding the leading group). Looks like it'll keep simmering under the surface for now. The fact that it was highlighted again probably means it is going to play a big role in the story eventually though.

Total users: 19

Star Crossed Anime Blog

Featured Posts

Welp, I’m back to the normal schedule now so my blogging will be back to normal from now on. My apology for those who waited for my weekly blogs for the last few weeks. For Kemurikusa, episode 6 was a slow one, even slower than its standard (and that says a lot), but the latest […]

Welcome to another week of Paranoia Agent! This week Kon explores different generations, Shounen Bat gets caught and the Old Lady becomes relevant. Lets dive in! After the bumpy reception I had towards last week’s episode, Paranoia Agent bounced back to wow me this week. Production wise, it was incredibly expressive this week. With the […]

Welcome to the big one, the start, the opening moments of Kaze Fui’s Hakone Ekiden! This week Fujioka drops some wisdom, the team learns their sections and Yuki gets some time with Kurahara. Lets jump in! This week was Kaze Fui’s big setup, along with some drops on Haiji’s background. Before we get to either of […]

Hello and welcome to what is, I believe, an anime original week of Dororo! This time we have a sympathetic ghoul, Hyakki dealing with his emotions and a continually worse feudal landscape. Lets jump in! Dororo was a rather disappointing one after last week, to be frank. Story wise there were some interesting ideas and […]

Hello and welcome to the halfway point of Mob Psycho Season 2! This week continues Reigen’s story as he rises high, falls low and comes to an epiphany. Lets jump in! Starting off, Mob Psycho once again looks fantastic. Say what you want about the story or characters, the quality of the animation is undeniable. […]

The treasurer of the student council, Ishigami Yuu, finally got a proper introduction this week. I’d say this episode was his time to shine, but it’s actually the opposite – he’s so preoccupied with Kaguya’s apparent hatred of him (as well as his own social faux pas) that it was actually his time to mope. […]

This week, once again, Paranoia Agent takes another interesting turn. This time we follow the cop who caught Shounen Bat, see a bit into organized crime and watch a man fall apart at the seams. Lets go! So in general, while this episode was interesting and explored some more aspects of society, I wasn’t big […]

For all of you who are disappointed that we didn’t cover the sequel to the show that even Elon Musk watches, I felt that this season of Kakegurui would benefit more from an periodic overview rather than following it week from week. Kakegurui was never about the mechanics nor tense stakes as it relies on […]

Welcome to the feel good relaxation week of Kaze Fui! This time the Twins confront Haiji, they see the track and Sakaki continues to be a dick. Lets jump in! Starting off, this episode was a very subdued one. Similar to Mob, Kaze Fui slowed down this week. Giving the characters room to breathe again […]

Latest Reviews

If there is one thing I have lost watching seasonal anime, it is patience. Every week I expect something to happen, some kind of payoff, to make watching that week worth it. Luckily, Planetes as brought that back to me. Its depth of writing, characters, and general structure belay an anime of a different age. […]

The controversial nature of this shows opening episode may have many turning away from it due to believing it’s nothing but shock value but that truly isn’t what Goblin Slayer is. I will say that the manga may hold some truth to that statement but thanks to some tasteful censoring(Yes, sometimes censoring can be a […]

Zombieland Saga was a show that came out of the gate guns blazing, no one expected it nor did anyone predict it but it left a strong impression when it first aired it’s starting episodes. Originally considered to be another zombie apocalypse anime, it overthrew expectations by turning out to be a zombie idol anime. […]

Let it be known that I’ve never been a fan of Trigger. For me, they’re one of the most style-with-no-substance studio on Earth with a tendency for god-awful fanservice, and total nonsense in terms of story and characters. Yet GRIDMAN completely caught me off guard in the first two episodes, and from there, there was […]

If anyone has been familiar with the first season of Thunderbolt Fantasy, you’d find yourself a lot to enjoy in this second installment. Served as a sequel, but not a direct continuation to the first, viewers don’t need the knowledge of the original in order to enjoy this ride. Thunderbolt 2 carries many trademarks that […]

In the last few years, it’s great to see P.A Works has slowly created their own studio identity, putting more original works with consistent production values. Just in 2018, they produced 4 shows (quite a good number if you ask me), 3 of them were original: Maquia, Sirius the Jaeger and Irozuku. As I said, […]

In the wake of many a school based light novel show this may be the small bits of fresh air was can savor out of this overdone setting. Rascal does not dream of Bunny Girl(Or by its japanese title above) is a series not about rascals or bunny girls but instead about contextualising common high […]

Some days, I wonder what it is with America and anime about organized crime. Baccano!, 91 Days, Blood Blockade Battlefront, all set in America, all involving criminal underworlds. Today, I get to add another to that list in the form of Banana Fish. Much more grounded than the others, it’s story dates all the way […]

According to much of the Western Anime community, this series wouldn’t be relevant for a site like this. Being made in the West by Americans, and English being its first language, many would disqualify it from the start. However I name them all fools for Castlevania, Directed by Sam Deats and Ryoichi Uchikoshi is clearly […]